Brad Pitt's children are dropping their dad's surname - here's why I did the same

Brad Pitt's children are dropping their dad's surname - here's why I did the sameImage source, Kylee Lynn PhotographyImage caption, Hannah (right) chose a combination of her mother's maiden name and her husband's surname after she got marriedByGrace DeanPublished3 minutes agoFor more than a decade, Hannah had been known by two surnames.On social media, sports rosters, email and restaurant bookings, she was Hannah Leonard, sharing her surname with her mother.But legally, and at work and school, she had a different surname - the one she inherited from her father.Hannah's parents divorced when she was a toddler and she hasn't had much of a relationship with her dad since. She says she last saw him seven years ago and isn't sure where he's living now.Last month, the 25-year-old in California legally changed her surname to Leonard-Ripley, removing the reminder of her father and replacing it with a name combining her mother's maiden name and her husband's surname.That same month, two of the adopted children of Hollywood divorcees Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt undertook an important legal step in the process to drop their father's surname, something they began earlier this year.Image source, Jason Mendez/Getty ImagesImage caption, Angelina Jolie with her children Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt and Maddox Chivan Jolie-PittIn April, Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt and Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt, aged 21 and 24, filed documents to remove their father's surname from their names, according to media reports.In June and July, the siblings carried out the legal requirement of publishing their name-change intention in a local paper for four weeks.Both have already used the surname Jolie in some circumstances, including Zahara during her graduation ceremony earlier this year and Maddox in his credits on a film. Another of Jolie and Pitt's six children, Shiloh, changed her surname to Jolie in 2024.Zahara and Maddox will have to wa...